Lupin's turn in the Limelight
by Miss SJB
Summary: A little story about Lupin finally finding love. And if anyone can think of a better title, I would really love to hear it!


Welcome to a cute little love story written from Remus Lupin's point of view. And possibly my OC's point of view as well.

Disclaimer: I do not own(or claim to own)Harry Potter or any other characters affiliated with him. This story is non-profit.

PS The above means you couldn't sue if you tried.

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Chapter 1- The girl in the corner. 

"Moony,"

"Moony,"

"MOONY!"

"What? What is it?" I shot up in bed looking around quickly.

"It's time to get up, idiot!" Sirius grinned at me.

"Hey, go easy on me. I'm still recovering," I said, holding a hand to my head.

"The full moon was two whole nights ago!" He exclaimed, yanking the covers away from me so I tumbled to the floor.

"Leave him alone, Padfoot. If he's still recovering, then let him recover!" James said from the other side of the dorm.

"You never let me recover," Sirius pouted. "Remember that time after the Yule Ball when you dumped that bucket of cold water over me at 3 a.m.?"

"It was your own fault. Don't drink if you can't handle the hangover," James told him airily, tossing down the letter he had been reading.

"What day is it?" I asked in confusion, fully disorientated by this point.

"It's Saturday, about seven o'clock, and your name is Remus Lupin. Got all that?"

"Very funny," I snapped, as everyone, including Peter, laughed. I locked myself in the bathroom and rested my hands on the edge of the basin, staring into the mirror. At least the dark circles under my eyes had begun to fade, I thought, as I eyed my thin, pale face. I wasn't naïve. I knew perfectly well that the only reason girls liked me was because I was friends with James Potter. I almost wished I didn't know him, so I could stop being the kid in the background. I had overheard too many conversations between girls that went along the lines of;

"_Who's that?"_

"_Oh, god, I know him from somewhere… Oh yeah! He's that Lupin kid, you know, James Potter's friend?"_

"_Oh right… You know, James said 'Hi' to me today,"_

"_Really? I wonder if he's broken up with Kylie,"_

Right then I'd want to stand up and scream that he wasn't just James Potter's weird little friend, he had a life of his own too. ButI was far too sensible for that.I just keptmy head down, pretendingI couldn't hear the conversation about James' love life that always followed. Didn't girls have anything else to talk about?I splashed some cold water ontomy face and began to get dressed.

"Where you going, Moony?"

"I'm-,"

"No, wait, let me guess…" Sirius put two fingers to each of his temples, pretending to be reading my mind. "The library?"

"Very funny, Padfoot. You know perfectly well that I have an essay to finish," I said evenly.

"You know something, Moony?" James began thoughtfully, waving his half eaten toast to reinforce his point. "I think you've found yourself a girl,"

"What makes you think that?" I asked, amused. Needless to say, today I felt like the least likely candidate for romance.

"Well, you spend so much time in the library-,"

"If that's really where you go," Sirius put in.

"That there must be a girl involved. Who is she? It'd better not be Evans. I know how much she likes the library," I rolled my eyes.

"Prongs, there is no girl, Padfoot, it is the library I go to, and Wormtail, you have crumbs all around your mouth," I said smoothly, watching Peter scrub at his face with his podgy little hands. "I'll see you guys later, I want to finish my essay before lunchtime,"

"He's far too sensible for his own good," Sirius muttered as I walked away.

"Come off it Padfoot," James argued. "If he was sensible, he wouldn't be friends with us," Chuckling to myself, I headed towards the library.

"Damnit!" I muttered under my breath as I made yet another mistake on my Transfiguration essay. I threw the quill down and sat back in my chair, savouring the few moments of silence away from the other Marauders. True, they were the greatest friends I'd ever had, but chaos and noise 24/7 wasn't my idea of heaven. Just then, someone caught my eye. A girl was sat alone in the corner, immersed in a book. Strands of dark hair fell across her face, and she brushed them away with slender fingers. Just then she seemed to realise I was looking, and glanced up, meeting my eyes. Her deep brown eyes surveyed me for a second, and I couldn't tear my eyes away. _Way to be subtle, Remus._ Suddenly, her face broke into a beautiful smile, and she turned back to her book. I sat still, my heart racing. Maybe James was right after all.

The next day, I went back to the library with James, half hoping to see that girl again. "Moony, quit daydreaming and help me with this history of magic essay!" James suddenly snapped. "You know I can't stand it, so don't make me stay here too long,"

"After that comment, I'm severely tempted,"

"Aw, c'mon Moony!" He pleaded, "I've got a date with Becca at five!"

"I thought you were seeing Kylie?" James shrugged.

"It's variable,"

"I don't understand how you do it,"

"It's all in the smile mate,"

"No, I mean how you can see two girls without even a trace of guilt, and all the while you're in love with a third!" James grinned smugly, and leaned back in his chair.

"Now, that's all part of my grand plan," He said proudly. "Wanna hear it?"

"No, but you're going to tell me," I sighed, pulling history books off the shelves and dumping them into his outstretched arms.

"Right! This is it; when Evans sees me with all those girls, it'll make her so jealous that-,"

"Hold up," I cut in. "You know that never works. You've tried it before,"

"Third time's a charm. Anyway, they're both great kissers," I rolled my eyes and dragged him to the nearest table. Opening the first book, I flicked through the pages until James said, "Mmm… She's fit. Maybe there is an up side to spending all your time in the library," Sighing, I looked up, ready to begin the lecture on how much work I was putting into helping him when I could be doing other things, when I saw who he was talking about. It was the same girl from yesterday, sat in the same corner, reading the same book. "What do you think, eh Moony?" I couldn't hide my blush as I looked back down at the book I was holding.

"Yeah, great,"

"Oh…" James said, a smirk creeping onto his face. "So this is the girl?"

"No!" I hissed.

"Okay. So you won't mind if I go over and say hi?"

"No! Wait, sit down," I said, grabbing his robes and pulling him back. "Don't think you can go chat some girl up while I sit here and do your homework!" James' face changed to a very self-righteous expression.

"I knew it, I knew it, I knew it, I KNEW IT!" He shouted the last part triumphantly. "You _do_ like her!"

"No, I just want to get this done as quickly as possible so I can get back to my homework,"

"Does she know you like her?"

"I don't like her!" I snapped.

"I'll take that as a no…" He said thoughtfully. "Want me to introduce you?"

"You don't know her either, and for the last time, I do not like her!" I didn't know what was wrong with James. I hadn't even spoken to this girl, and I'd only seen her twice!

An hour later we had finished James' essay, and he was feeling very proud of himself. "I knew I could do it!" He grinned. I glared at him. "Hehe… Of course by that you know I mean that _we_could doit, right?" I rolled my eyes and looked at my watch.

"You know it's like, half past five right?" The colour drained from James' face.

"Oh shit! Becca's going to kill me!" Laughing, I watched as he sprinted from the library, completely ignoring Madam Pince's futile attempts to stop him. I began putting the books away, feeling slightly better. There was just one book left, and I realised that it cam from the shelf right above where the girl was sitting. "Um, excuse me…" I began sheepishly, approaching her.

"Yes?" She said, looking up from her book and smiling at me.

"Uh… could you please move for a moment?"

"Why?" She asked, sounding confused.

"Oh! I need to put this book away, that's all,"

"Right. Sure thing," She hopped up out of her seat and waited patiently while I tried to reach the shelf the book belonged on.

"Oh, Damnit," I muttered, climbing the shelves and shoving the book back onto the ridiculously high shelf on which it belonged. I hopped back down to find the girl looking at me strangely.

"What?" I asked, feeling self-conscious. Had she noticed how pale and thin I was? Was there a rip in my uniform I didn't know about?

"Nothing, it's just… You're really athletic," I felt my cheeks heating up. She giggled. "Sorry, that makes me sound like I'm coming on to you. I'm Bella," She extended a hand, and I shook it warmly.

"Remus," I grinned, feeling slightly more comfortable. "So what's that you're reading?"

"Oh, it's just a book on transfiguration," She said quickly.

"Good?"

"Uh, yeah, it's great. So, you're like, James Potter's own personal tutor?" My heart fell. Brilliant. I should've known that she wasn't really interested in me.

"That's me," I said gloomily.

"Well, do you think you could give me a hand? This book's quite heavy going,"

My heart felt a little lighter.

"Sure thing,"

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Okay, Chapter 1 finished. Please review with any improvements/suggestions. I live off reviews!

Miss SJB


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